Thomas Girardi. Photo: Christine Jegan

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has chosen more than 100 judges, plaintiffs lawyers, Big Law partners and in-house attorneys from around the state to guide him on filling judicial vacancies, his office said Wednesday.

The 111 trial court judges, state appellate justices, county prosecutors, litigators and former state bar leaders will serve on eight regional committees charged with providing the governor and Judicial Appointments Secretary Martin Jenkins with “preliminary, non-partisan feedback” on applicants for the bench.

Several plaintiffs lawyers were  picked for advisers, and among them is Thomas Girardi, the prominent Beverly Hills lawyer who was recently hit with suits in Los Angeles and Arizona over allegedly failing to make certain loan payments.

Also chosen was Paul Grewal, deputy general counsel at Facebook and a former U.S. magistrate judge in California's Northern District, who will vet candidates from the San Francisco Bay Area. Joining Grewal on the Bay Area committee is Lindbergh Porter, chair of Littler Mendelson's board of directors.

Former state Supreme Court Justice Carlos Moreno will serve on the Los Angeles County committee alongside Girardi, who was not immediately reached for comment. The Los Angeles committee also includes Roman Silberfeld of Robins Kaplan and eight Los Angeles Superior Court judges.

Joining Grewal on the Bay Area committee is Lindbergh Porter, chair of Littler Mendelson's board of directors, and Quyen Ta, a Boies Schiller Flexner partner who focuses on class action defense.

Jinnifer Pitcher, a senior associate at Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe in Sacramento, will serve on the Northern California committee. Cooley partner Michael Attanasio, chair of the firm's global litigation team, will serve as an adviser on the San Diego committee.

The regional advisers as described by Newsom's office will make up a more formal vetting structure than the one used by Gov. Jerry Brown, who relied on an inner circle of advisers and his own quizzing of some judicial candidates.

Former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger employed a system—similar to the one outlined by Newsom—of regional screening committees. But there was one significant difference: Schwarzenegger refused to identify his private advisers, a practice that so angered some legislative Democrats that they introduced ultimately unsuccessful legislation to unmask them.

“The people of our state have little insight on the process by which judges are chosen,” Newsom said in a prepared statement. “It is only fair that the public knows who is helping to select the people who will serve them.”

1st District Court of Appeals Justice Martin Jenkins. Credit: Jason Doiy / ALM

Jenkins chose the 111 advisers based on their good standing with the bar and their diversity with respect to race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation and practice area, according to the governor's office.

Three former presidents of the California State Bar were named: Holly Fujie, now a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge; Luis Rodriguez, division chief of the Los Angeles County Public Defender's Office; and Michael Colantuono, a municipal law specialist with Colantuono, Highsmith & Whatley in Grass Valley.

Jenkins also chose from the ranks of the biggest plaintiffs firms in the state. Five advisers are consumer attorneys who donated, or whose firms donated, more than $253,000 combined to Newsom's gubernatorial campaign.

The regional advisory committees will meet at the request of Jenkins and “provide feedback on candidates' legal acumen, work ethic, temperament and demonstrated commitment to public service” before their names are forwarded to Newsom, the governor's office said.

Attorneys interested in becoming a judge should not contact the advisers directly, according to the governor's office, but should instead start the application process on the administration's website.

The full list of regional advisers is posted below: